Carnival revises dress code policy to ban offensive messages

Carnival Cruise Line is changing its dress code to ban cruisers from wearing offensive clothing while on board its ships.

The cruise line has changed its policy, outlining in the FAQ section on its website:

“All guests are expected to ensure their clothing and accessories are respectful to fellow guests. Specifically, items worn during the cruise should not contain any message that may be considered offensive or contain nudity, profanity, sexual innuendo/suggestions. In addition, clothing/accessories should not promote negative ethnic or racial, commentary, or hatred or violence in any form.”

Carnival’s brand ambassador and senior cruise director John Heald posted on Facebook earlier this month that the policy had been added “in the past few days.” A Carnival spokesperson said that the change was the result “after some incidents were reported in the media about other travel sectors where customers were wearing clothing with very threatening messages.”

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The move from Carnival follows similar moves from other companies in the travel industry, though the policies are often vague. For example, American Airlines’ conditions of carriage say that passengers must “dress appropriately; bare feet or offensive clothing aren’t allowed.” In the cruise industry, neither Royal Caribbean nor Norwegian have similar policies for cruisers.

It remains unclear exactly what kind of clothes will fall under the policy. According to a Carnival spokesperson, potentially offensive articles will be reviewed on an individual basis.

“We want to make sure that all of our guests feel comfortable when cruising with us, and that includes being around guests wearing clothing with inappropriate images or language,” said Vance Gullisken, a Carnival spokesperson. “We will evaluate situations on a case-by-case basis and take appropriate steps as necessary.”

Earlier this month, Carnival announced that it was forced to delay the launch of its new ship, the 17-deck-high Mardi Gras, until Nov. 14. It was originally scheduled to begin voyages on Aug. 31.

Featured photo courtesy of Carnival.